1Brothers and sisters, the thing I want most is for all the Jews to be saved. That is my prayer to God. 2I can say this about them: They really try to follow God, but they do not know the right way. 3Because they did not know the way that God makes people right with him, they tried to make themselves right in their own way. So they did not accept God’s way of making people right. 4Christ ended the law so that everyone who believes in him may be right with God.

5Moses writes about being made right by following the law. He says, “A person who obeys these things will live because of them.” 6But this is what the Scripture says about being made right through faith: “Don’t say to yourself, ‘Who will go up into heaven?’ ” (That means, “Who will go up to heaven and bring Christ down to earth?”) 7“And do not say, ‘Who will go down into the world below?’ ” (That means, “Who will go down and bring Christ up from the dead?”) 8This is what the Scripture says: “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart.” That is the teaching of faith that we are telling. 9If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and if you believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, you will be saved. 10We believe with our hearts, and so we are made right with God. And we declare with our mouths that we believe, and so we are saved. 11As the Scripture says, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be disappointed.” 12That Scripture says “anyone” because there is no difference between those who are Jews and those who are not. The same Lord is the Lord of all and gives many blessings to all who trust in him, 13as the Scripture says, “Anyone who calls on the Lord will be saved.”

14But before people can ask the Lord for help, they must believe in him; and before they can believe in him, they must hear about him; and for them to hear about the Lord, someone must tell them; 15and before someone can go and tell them, that person must be sent. It is written, “How beautiful is the person who comes to bring good news.” 16But not all the Jews accepted the good news. Isaiah said, “Lord, who believed what we told them?” 17So faith comes from hearing the Good News, and people hear the Good News when someone tells them about Christ.

18But I ask: Didn’t people hear the Good News? Yes, they heard—as the Scripture says:

“Their message went out through all the world;

their words go everywhere on earth.”#Psalm 19:4

19Again I ask: Didn’t the people of Israel understand? Yes, they did understand. First, Moses says:

“I will use those who are not a nation to make you jealous.

I will use a nation that does not understand to make you angry.”#Deuteronomy 32:21

20Then Isaiah is bold enough to say:

“I was found by those who were not asking me for help.

I made myself known to people who were not looking for me.”#Isaiah 65:1